Apparatus for driving paper making machines and the like



April 6, 1965 L. A. MOORE ETAL 3,176,543

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APPARATUS FOR DRIVING P APER MAKING MACHINES AND THE LIKE April 6, 1965 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed June 15, 1962 INVENTORJ' [arr-ea 221g;

ya! l/me ATTORNEYS BY 10 I s/V April 6, 1965 A. MOORE ETAL APPARATUS FOR DRIVING PAPER MAKING MACHINES AND THE LIKE Filed June 15, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 -INVENTORJ lazrrence flu mfu; fioare BY lqymf Hmer Hess A 'ITORNE YS April 1965 L. A. MOORE ETAL 3,176,543

APPARATUS FOR DRIVING PAPER MAKING MACHINES AND THE LIKE Filed June 15, 1962 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 l il r R Q l 1 Q i 5 r V m E Q s 1 l I Q 3M 5 I v W Y j \a Z w a A \Q Q l 0\ .I '1 [3] K I! n (4% El K 4 I 1 4 L J 6 5 J 4 2 L INVENTQZEJ 4 larrzzzce Iayzsi'g} lVoore BY loyal bmer 19655 g AITORNEYS United States Patent 3,176,543 APPARATUS FGR DRIVHNG PAPER MAKENG MACEHNES AN?) TIE UKE Lawrence A. Moore md Loyal H. Hess, Beioit, Wis,

assiwcrs to Beloit orporation, heloit, Win, a corporation of Wisconsin Fiied June 15, 1962, Ser. No. 92,745 3 Claims. (Cl. 74681) This invention relates to improvements in apparatus particularly adapted for driving paper making machines and the like.

In the drive for paper making machines, the successive parts of the machine must be operable at constant speeds which differ by small amounts from the preceding and/ or succeeding parts. These speed differences, often termed draw, accommodate changes in length and/ or tension in the paper, or like, web to be processed. Such draws or differences in speed furthermore relate to a predetermined main, or base speed, which is preselected to suit the weight and grade of paper being made.

Paper making machines are conventionally driven from a line shaft connected to a prime mover. The line shaft extends susbtantially the entire length of the paper machine, and is connected to the several successive machine units through section drive units which provide for the required right angle drive and usually for a limited degree of input speed variations with respect to the base speed. This arrangement requires that the line shaft be supported on floor mounted bearing pedestals. Section drive units must then provide for unit input shafts at elevations suited for driving the individual units. The space occupied by the units and by the line shaft would be more advantageously utilized if unobstructed, for access to the machine for inspecting, service and maintenance.

Synchronous motors, varied in speed by electric control mechanisms to provide the requisite draw have been provided to drive the individual drive units. In such drives the controls for varying the speed of the synchronous motors are extremely complicated and expensive and require a large amount of space, with the result that such drive systems have never come into widespread use.

A principal object of the present invention is to improve upon the drive systems and mechanisms for driving the individual units of a paper making machine line by utilizing a relatively inexpensive independently driven mechanical drive for each unit in a paper making machine, arranged to drive the units at preselected constant speeds.

A further object of the invention is to improve upon the drive mechanisms for paper making machines by utilizing differential drive mechanisms for varying the speeds of synchronous motors connected to drive each individual unit of the paper making machine.

A further and important object of the invention is to simplify the drives for the individual units of paper making machines by utilizing a separate synchronous motor for driving each unit of the paper making machine, and by providing a relatively inexpensive mechanical means for preselecting the out-put speeds of the synchronous motors.

A still further object of the invention is to improve upon the drive systems for the individual units of paper making machines in which individual synchronous motors are provided for driving each unit of the paper making machine, by providing a relatively inexpensive mechanical drive mechanism to vary the out-put speed of an associated constant speed synchronous motor in place of the expensive electronic control systems heretofore used for this purpose.

These and other objects of the invention will appear 3,176,543 Patented Apr. 6, 1965 "ice from time to time as the following specification proceeds and with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a diagrammatic view, diagrammatically illustrating a drive system constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view taken through a portion of a drive system constructed in accordance with the principles of the present invention;

FIGURE 3 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view forming in effect a continuation of FIGURE 2;

FIGURE 4 is a detail partial fragmentary plan view illustrating the drive from the primary drive mechanism to a secondary variable speed drive mechanism for varying the speed of the primary drive mechanism;

FIGURE 5 is a vertical fragmentary longitudinal sectional view of a modified form of drive constructed in accordance with the present invention;

FIGURE 6 is a fragmentary longitudinal sectional view forming a continuation of the drive shown in FIG- URE 5; and

FIGURE 7 is a fragmentary view showing a modified form of drive to a variable speed drive mechanism.

In the embodiment of the invention illustrated in FIG- URE l of the drawings, we have shown a series of sections or units It 11, 12 and 13 of a paper making machine driven by individual synchronous motors 100, 110, and respectively, located in the paper machine building. The motors 160, 110, 12% and 130 are supplied with power by an alternator 114 which may be in a power plant remote from the paper machine building and which may be driven by a turbine 115. The motors 109, 110, 120 and 130 are connected to drive differential units 191, 111, 121 and 131 respectively, connected in turn to the individual paper machine units by clutches 162, 112, 122 and 132 respectively. The differential units are of the class having three elements, of which one is driven by a principal power source, the second is driven by or through a variable speed device, and the third thereby is controllably driven at a variable speed which is the algebraic sum of the speeds of the input elements. Each synchronous motor is connected to drive the input shaft of the associated differential unit at a constant speed. The output speeds of the drive units, however, are varied by variable speed drive units 103, which may be in the form of infinitely and constantly variable speed units, such as the P.I.V. variable speed unit manufactured and sold by Link Belt Company.

It should, of course, be understood that various forms of commercial variable speed units may be used to vary the speeds of the associated differential unit and that the P.I.V. unit is referred to herein for illustrative purposes only.

The differential drive unit 161 is shown in FIGURES 2 and 3 as being an epicyclic or planetary geared drive unit and includes a casing 17 in two parts 18 and 19. The part 19 has a hub 20 journalled adjacent its outer end in a bearing support 21 on an anti-friction bearing 22. The part 18 has an elongated hub 23 journalled in an anti-friction bearing 24 supported in a bearing support 25 extending upwardly of the floor of a housing 26 for the differential drive unit 101. The hub 23 is shown as having a control shaft 27 journalled therein and extending outwardly beyond the outer end thereof.

The casing 17 is rotatably driven by a bevel gear 28 rotatable about a horizontal axis and suitably secured to the casing part 18. The bevel gear 28 is meshed with and driven from a bevel pinion 29 on the upper end of a vertical input shaft 36, journalled in a bearing support sleeve 31 on anti-friction bearings 32. The input shaft 31} may be driven from a synchronous motor 34. The input shaft 30 may also be driven from a line shaft (not shown) through a conventional bevel gear drive train (not shown), which may, with this arrangement, now be mounted below the machine room floor, thus making the desired space available.

The hub 23 has a spur gear 35 keyed or otherwise secured thereto, which meshes with and drives a spur gear 36 on a drive shaft 37, forming the drive member for the P.I.V. unit 103. An output shaft 39 of the P.I.V. unit 103 has a spur gear 49 keyed or otherwise secured thereto, meshing with and driving a gear 41 keyed or otherwise secured to the control shaft 27 for the differential drive unit.

The differential drive unit 101 may be of a form similar to that shown and described in an application Serial No. 135,186, filed August 31, 1961, now abandoned, by Lawrence A. Moore, and includes an internal gear 44 clamped between the parts 18 and 19 of the housing 17 and directly driven by said housing and the' bevel gear 28. The internal gear 44 meshes with and drives an epicyclic pinion 45 mounted on a transverse shaft 46 journalled adjacent its opposite ends in a cage 47. The pinions 45 in turn mesh with a gear 49 on a shaft 50, journalled in the cage 47. The shaft 56 has a pinion 51 keyed or otherwise secured thereto meshing with and driving the epicyclic' pinion 45. The gear 49 in turn meshes with and is driven from a pinion o3 keyed or otherwise secured to the control shaft 27. The cage 47 is keyed or otherwise secured to an output shaft 55 for driving said output shaft at a controlled rate of speed, controlled by the P. I.V. drive unit 103.

When the P.I.V. unit 103 is set at a speed ratio of 1 to 1 and the gear 53 on the control shaft 27 is rotated at the same angular or rotational speed as internal gear 55, then the output shaft 44 will rotate at the same speed as the casing 17. As the control shaft 27 and gear 53 are increased or decreased in relative angular speed with respect to the internal gear 44, the cage 47 secured to the output shaft 53 will then decrease or increase proportionately in speed.

When the P.I.V. unit is set at a ratio of 2 to 1, the output of the P.I.V. unit will then be twice the input, with the result that the control shaft 27 will be driven at twice the rate of speed of the casing 17. The cage 47' and shaft 55 will thus rotate at a lower speed than the speed of rotation of the casing 17, the actual speed depending upon the ratios selected for the gears of the train.

When the P.I.V. unit is set for a ratio of 1 to 2, the control shaft 27 will rotate at half the speed of rotation of the casing 17 with a resultant increase in speed of rotation of the cage 47 and the output shaft 55.

Thus, as a relative speed of rotation of the control shaft 27 is increased with respect to the speed of rotation of the casing 17, the speed of rotation of the cage 47 and output shaft 55 will decrease a proportionate amount, dependent upon the reduction between the gear 53 and the reaction gear 49. As the P.I.V. unit is regulated to effect the rotation of the control shaft 44 at a slower speed of rotation than the speed of rotation of the casing 17, the speed of rotation of the cage 47 and output shaft 55 will be increased a proportionate amount.

The output shaft 55 is shown in FIGURE 3 as being journalled within the hub 20 on anti-friction bearings 56 and as having a gear 57 keyed or otherwise secured thereto.

a The gear 57 forms the sun gear of a planetary geared reduction drive 58 and meshes with and drives planetary pinions 59 on shafts 60 journalled at their opposite ends in a cage 61. The cage 61 rotates, about an axis coaxial with the axis of rotation of the shaft 55 and isshown as having a shaft 62 formed integrally therewith and extending outwardly through a hub 63 of the casing of the planetary geared reduction device 58, and is journalled within said hub on anti-friction bearing 64, 64.

The planetary pinions 59 mesh with a ring gear 65 having an annular tongue 66 extending radially outwardly therefrom and resiliently mounted between the halves of the casing for the planetary geared reduction device in a resilient annular packing member 67. The resilient annular packing member 67 is generally U- shaped in cross section and is resiliently clamped into engagement with the annular tongue 66 by the two halves of the casing 58 of the planetary geared reduction device. The resilient packing member 67 may be made from rubber, one of the well known substitutes for rubber or from a plastic material, such as nylon or Teflon and by its resiliency equally distributes the loads between the planetary pinions.

The hub 63 has an external drum 6%, keyed or otherwise secured thereto and engaged by shoes 69 of an inflatable brake 70 of a type known to the trade as a Fawick brake.

When the output shaft 62 is loaded and the brake 70 is released, the gear 57 on the end of the output shaft 55 will rotatably drive the planetary pinions 59 held from orbital movement by the load on the output shaft 62. This will rotate the ring gear 64 and casing 61 about the axis of the output shaft 55. As, however, the Fawick brake 70 is applied to resist rotation of the hub 63 and brake drum 67, the planetary pinions 59 will tend to walk about the internal gear 64 and rotatably drive the cage 61 and shaft 62, depending upon the load on said shaft and the slippage of the Fawick brake. When the Fawick brake is fully applied, the cage 61 will be positively driven by the planetary pinions 59 meshing with the internal gear 59, held from rotation by the'Fawick brake 70.

The planetary geared reduction device thus forms a direct geared reduction between the shaft 95 and the shaft 117 in accordance with the pitch diameters of the pinions 57 and 59 and the internal gear 64 and forms a slipping drive as the Fawick brake 69 is partially or fully released.

In the modified form of the invention diagrammatically illustrated in FIGURE 7, the drive may be like that shown in FIGURES 2 and 3 of the drawings. The bevel gear 28 has been replaced with a spur gear 71 keyed or otherwise secured to the hub of a casing part 72 of a differential drive unit 73. The spur gear 71 meshes with and is driven from a spur pinion 74 on a transverse shaft 75. A pulley 76 onthe transverse shaft is shown as being driven from a pulley 77 on a line shaft 78, extending at right angles of the transverse shaft 75, through a quarter turn belt 79. This provides a simple and inexpensive drive, eliminates the relatively expensive right angled geared drive shown in FIGURE 2 and makes it possible to replace the bevel gears and pinions of FIGURE 2 by spur or helical gearing.

In the form of the invention illustrated in FIGURES 5 and 6, a differential drive unit 101a is shown as including two casing parts 80 and 81. The differential drive unit 101a is like the differential drive unit 101, so need not be shown or described in detail. The casing part 80 has a hub 82 journalled in an anti-friction bearing 83 supported in a bearing support 84 extending upwardly of the floor of a housing for the differential drive unit. The hub 82 has a control shaft 85 extending therethrough, coaxially thereof. The control shaft 85 extends within the casing parts 80 and 81 and has a control gear (not shown) keyed or otherwise secured thereto for controlling the speed of an output shaft 96 of the differential drive unit in the F 3 and hub 82 if desired. The synchronous motor 39 may be of a well known form so need only be shown diagrammatically herein.

The opposite end of the motor shaft 88 from the flanged portion 37 has a spur gear 99 secured thereto driving a spur gear 91 forming the drive member for a P.I.V. drive unit 92 like the P.I.V. drive unit 103. An output shaft 93 of the P.I.V. drive unit 92 has a spur gear 94 secured thereto meshing with and driving a spur gear 95, keyed or otherwise secured to the control shaft 35, for driving said control shaft at a speed determined by the setting of said P.I.V. unit 92.

An output shaft 95 of the differential drive unit 191a is shown in FIGURE 6 as having a hub 97 keyed or otherwise secured thereto. The hub 97 forms a mounting for a Web or spider 98 forming a support for an internal clutch drum 99 of an inflatable clutch 105. The inflatable clutch 105 is of a type known to the trade as a Fawick clutch and includes generally an inflatable tube 196 extending along the inner periphery of the internal drum 99 and having shoes 107 carried thereby for engagement with the periphery of a drum 108 to effect a drive from the output shaft 96 to a coaxial shaft 109. The shaft 109 may form a drive shaft for a paper mill unit, ormay be connected to the paper mill unit through a geared reduction train 115, the geared reduction train 115 driving an output shaft 116 coaxial with the shaft 199.

As shown in FIGURE 6, the geared reduction train 115 is contained in a housing 117 which may be detachably bolted or otherwise secured to the end of the housing for the differential drive unit, to accommodate the substitution of various selected reduction units for the reduction unit shown herein in accordance with the requirements for the particular paper machine unit that is being driven by the output shaft 199. The housing 117 and geared reduction train 115 may be substituted for other housings and geared reduction trains and may be eliminated under certain circumstances in which case the shaft 109 forms the output shaft and may have direct drive connection with paper making machine unit.

An inflatable Fawick brake 118 including an internal brake drum 119, held from rotation in a suitable manner, is provided to hold the output shaft 109 from rotation when the clutch 195 is disengaged. The Fawick brake 118 and the Fawick clutch 195 may be controlled by suitable valve means to operate alternately of each other.

It may be seen from the foregoing that by the transmission device just described, a constant speed synchronous motor may in effect form a part of a differential variable speed drive unit capable of employing the entire range of speed variations of a known positively infinitely variable speed changing device, and that the difierential variable speed drive unit forms a simple speed varying means for the synchronous motor, making it possible to do away with the complicated electronic speed changing mechanisms for the synchronous motor heretofore used. This results in a relatively inexpensive means which is attained by utilizing small fractions of the power delivered to the variable speed differential drive unit to operate the secondary variable speed unit, which accurately controls the speed of the primary differential drive unit.

While we have herein shown and described one form in which our invention may be embodied, it may readily be understood that various variations and modifications in the invention may be attained without departing from the spirit and scope of the novel concepts thereof.

We claim as our invention:

1. In a power transmission device for driving paper making machines and the like, a synchronous motor having a casing and a hollow motor shaft projecting from each end of said casing,

an output shaft coaxial with said hollow motor shaft and spaced therefrom,

a primary variable speed drive unit including a casing 6 journalled for rotation about a horizontal axis and having said output shaft journalled therein and extending therefrom,

a coupling connecting one end of said hollow motor shaft with said casing,

a control shaft extending through said hollow motor shaft beyond opposite ends thereof and having one end journalled in said casing having a pinion thereon within said casing,

a ring gear within said casing and rotatably driven thereby,

a cage rotatably journalled within said casing and forming a drive member for said output shaft and having at least one planetary pinion journalled therein meshing with said internal gear,

a geared drive connection between said pinion on said control shaft and said planetary pinion,

a secondary variable speed drive unit on the opposite side of said motor from said casing,

a geared drive connection from said hollow motor shaft to said secondary variable speed drive unit, and a geared drive connection from said secondary variable speed drive unit to said control shaft for driving said control shaft to vary the output speed of said planetary geared drive unit and the speed of rotation of said output shaft.

2. In a power transmission device for driving paper making machines and the like,

a housing,

a synchronous motor mounted within said housing and having a casing having a hollow motor shaft journalled therein and projecting from each end of said casing, said housing having an end wall,

an output shaft journalled in said end wall coaxial with said hollow motor shaft and projecting outward- 1y of said housing,

a primary variable speed planetary drive unit having a casing journalled within said housing for rotation about a horizontal axis coaxial with the axis of rotation of said hollow motor shaft,

a coupling connecting one end of said hollow motor shaft with said casing, a ring gear within and driven by said casing,

a cage rotatably journalled within said casing having a planetary pinion journalled therein and meshing with said internal gear,

a control shaft extending through said hollow motor shaft beyond opposite ends thereof and having one end extending within said casing and journalled therein,

a control pinion on the inner end of said control shaft,

a geared drive connection from said control pinion to said planetary pinion,

a secondary variable speed drive unit mounted within said housing on the opposite side of said motor from said casing,

a geared drive connection from said hollow motor shaft to said secondary drive unit,

a geared drive connection from said secondary drive unit to said control shaft,

21 geared drive connection from said cage to said output shaft,

a speed reducer housing detachably mounted on the end of said housing through which said output shaft extends and enclosing said output shaft and containing speed reducer gearing driven by said output Shaft,

said speed reducer housing being replaceable by other speed reducer housings containing different gear reduction trains driven from said output shaft.

3. In a power transmission device for driving paper making machines and the like,

an output shaft,

a synchronous motor having a motor shaft coaxial with said output shaft,

mechanical means for driving said output shaft from said motor shaft and for varying the speed of rotation of saidoutput shaft including a planetary geared variable speed drive unit having a casing,

a drive connection from said motor to said casing,

a ring gear within and driven by said casing,

a cage rotatably journalled within said casing and having a planetary pinion journalled therein meshing with saidring gear,

a shaft coaxial with said output shaft and driven from said cage and having a sun gear on its outer end,

a secondary variable speed drive unit,

a drive connection from said motor shaft to said secondary drive unit,

a speed varying gear journalled within said casing and having geared connection with said planetary pinion,

a drive connection from said secondary variable speed drive unit to said speed varying gear, for varying the speed of rotation thereof,

and a drive connection from said sun gear to said output shaft comprising a casing enclosing said sun gear,

a ring gear within said casing,

a cage carrying a planetary pinion meshing with said ring gear and orbitally travelling thereabout,

a shaft coaxial with said motor shaft driven by said cage,

a drive connection from said sun gear to said planetary pinion,

a drive connection from said cage to said output shaft including a clutch,

and a brake holding said output shaft from rotation upon disengagement of said clutch.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,530,967 3/25 Williams 74681 1,707,376 4/29 Vogel 74681 1,709,296 4/ 29 Wyss 74-395 X 2,027,218 1/36 Armington 7 4-664 2,120,714 6/38 Scott 226- 111 2,164,818 7/39 Heyer 74689 2,514,240 7/50 H'ornbostel 74-689' 2,862,588 12/58 Tebo 192-4 2,989,125 6/61 Hoppenworth.

3,042,279 7/ 62 Laverdisse 2261 11 5 DON A WAITE, Primary Examiner. 

1. IN A POWER TRANSMISSION DEVICE FOR DRIVING PAPER MAKING MACHINES AND THE LIKE, A SYNCHRONOUS MOTOR HAVING A CASING AND A HOLLOW MOTOR SHAFT PROJECTING FROM EACH END OF SAID CASING, AN OUTPUT SHAFT COAXIAL WITH SAID HOLLOW MOTOR SHAFT AND SPACED THEREFROM, A PRIMARY VARIABLE SPEED DRIVE UNIT INCLUDING A CASING JOURNALLED FOR ROTATION ABOUT A HORIZONTAL AXIS AND HAVING SAID OUTPUT SHAFT JOURNALLED THEREIN AND EXTENDING THEREFROM, A COUPLING CONNECTING ONE END OF SAID HOLLOW MOTOR SHAFT WITH SAID CASING, A CONTROL SHAFT EXTENDING THROUGH SAID HOLLOW MOTOR SHAFT BEYOND OPPOSITE ENDS THEREOF AND HAVING ONE END JOURNALLED IN SAID CASING HAVING A PINION THEREON WITHIN SAID CASING, A RING GEAR WITHIN SAID CASING AND ROTATABLY DRIVEN THEREBY, A CAGE ROTATABLY JOURNALLED WITHIN SAID CASING AND FORMING A DRIVE MEMBER FOR SAID OUTPUT SHAFT AND HAVING AT LEAST ONE PLANETARY PINION JOURNALLED THEREIN MESHING WITH SAID INTERNAL GEAR, A GEARED DRIVE CONNECTION BETWEEN SAID PINION ON SAID CONTROL SHAFT AND SAID PLANETARY PINION, A SECONDARY VARIABLE SPEED DRIVE UNIT ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE OF SAID MOTOR FROM SAID CASING, A GEARED DRIVE CONNECTION FROM SAID HOLLOW MOTOR SHAFT TO SAID SECONDARY VARIABLE SPEED DRIVE UNIT, AND A GEARED DRIVE CONNECTION FROM SAID SECONDARY VARIABLE SPEED DRIVE UNIT TO SAID CONTROL SHAFT FOR DRIVING SAID CONTROL SHAFT TO VARY THE OUTPUT SPEED OF SAID PLANETARY GEARED DRIVE UNIT AND THE SPEED OF ROTATION OF SAID OUTPUT SHAFT. 